By the end, there was the unmistakable feeling that all Arsenal were doing was delaying the inevitable. The earliest Chelsea can win the title now is at home to Crystal Palace next Sunday and, if not then, the following week against Liverpool. The only question is when the coronation happens but the real detail is that the victory parade has already been arranged for 25 May – and there was nothing Arsenal could do here to make that feel even the slightest bit premature.
Instead, we had the result that everybody could probably have predicted when they saw José Mourinho had started with a team devoid of an orthodox centre-forward. Chelsea, once again, showed their qualities of structure and defensive organisation and it is now five games since Arsenal last managed a goal against them. Arsène Wenger has still not beaten Mourinho in 13 attempts and Chelsea stubbornly refused to be drawn into the kind of match that would suit their opponents.
“Boring, boring Chelsea,” Arsenal’s supporters taunted. Mourinho came prepared into his press conference. “Boring?” he asked. “Ten years without a title – that’s boring.”
As put-downs go, it was one of his better ones. Yet he could hardly deny Chelsea’s conservatism. The tactic was to keep at least half a dozen players behind the ball and insure themselves against the counterattack, Wenger’s weapon of choice. Chelsea are grinding their way to glory but, boy, they are good at these smothering techniques.
John Terry made it seem implausible he was not even on the shortlist for the PFA Player of the Year award, leading Mourinho to describe it as the greatest performance he had seen from his captain. César Azpilicueta excelled at left-back and at the final whistle the fist-pumping told its own story. Branislav Ivanovic launched himself into the air. Terry let out a cry of pent-up emotion. Gary Cahill embraced Azpilicueta. That sturdy quartet of thou-shall-not-pass defenders punched the sky and screamed their delight in a collective appreciation of their own work.
Did Chelsea come for the scoreless draw? No, Mourinho always wants to win but the priority was certainly to hold the fort – and there is no better team in England when it comes to subduing high-calibre opponents. It is the first time Wenger’s team have dropped points at home since November and we have to go back to the previous February to find the last occasion they did not score a league goal at home. Mesut Özil, Alexis Sánchez and their other danger men had lots of the ball but there was always that formidable bank of blue shirts ahead of them.
The paradox, perhaps, is that Chelsea could also reflect the game might have turned out very differently but for the moment, a quarter of an hour in, that provided the game’s biggest controversy. David Ospina, Arsenal’s goalkeeper, was certainly fortunate not to be punished after charging from his goalline, missing the ball and clattering into Oscar. Héctor Bellerín prevented Oscar’s looping effort from bouncing into the goal and Chelsea had every right to argue it should have been a penalty.
Wenger admitted afterwards his team had been lucky but Chelsea lose an element of sympathy because of the other occasions they resorted to deceptions to try to win a penalty. Oscar can just about be given the benefit of the doubt after an optimistic fall in front of Bellerín but Cesc Fàbregas deserved all the condemnation that came his way when he wafted his leg in the direction of Santi Cazorla, then plopped to the ground in the vain hope that the referee, Michael Oliver, might be conned. All of Mourinho’s grievances will be undermined as long as his players try it on this way.
Arsenal had complaints of their own bearing in mind the incident later in the first half when Cahill’s left arm blocked Cazorla’s goal-bound shot inside the penalty area. Özil was Arsenal’s greatest threat in the first half. Aaron Ramsey’s link-up play with the overlapping Bellerín was another feature but, with less of the ball, Mourinho’s team still created the best chances of that period. Fàbregas’s pass for Oscar’s opportunity was the outstanding moment and, seven minutes before the interval, Ramires ought to have done better after Willian’s pass.
Oscar had to go off at half-time, taken to hospital and still suffering the effects of the collision with Ospina, and Didier Drogba took over as their centre-forward to give the team a more orthodox look.
Fàbregas took up a more attacking position and Willian switched to the right, with Ramires dropping inside to partner Nemanja Matic. Yet their tactics rarely deviated. At one point Willian led a promising break and there was only Drogba and Fàbregas who showed the faintest interest in supporting their colleague. The rest hung back.
Fàbregas had a mixed afternoon on his first game back at his old club. A lot of passes were misplaced and, in the worst moments, it felt as if the protective mask he is wearing to protect a broken nose must be hampering his vision.
Fàbregas eventually removed it after one lapse. There were boos every time he touched the ball and, unforgivably, one Arsenal supporter decided the minute’s silence for the forthcoming 30th anniversary of the Bradford City fire was an appropriate time to abuse an old favourite. Equally, many applauded him when the Spaniard was substituted late on.
The more important matter for Chelsea was that they had edged another point closer to where they want to be. The substitute Danny Welbeck could not adjust his feet quickly enough with a stoppage-time chance and Chelsea’s celebrations at the end were so jubilant it said one thing: they knew.
Man of the match John Terry (Chelsea)
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